Ukraine must receive support that will force Russia into negotiations - Plenkovic

Ukraine must receive support from its partners in order to establish a new balance of power, which will force Russia to stop its aggression.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said this in his speech at the opening of the third Ukraine-South-East Europe summit, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

He noted that not confronting Russia in its aggression in Ukraine would encourage similar authoritarian regimes worldwide to use force to achieve their goals. According to him, Europe knows how dangerous it is, and therefore Europeans should not passively observe Ukraine's struggle against Russian aggression.

"The path to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine can only be based on international law, including the United Nations Charter. In this respect, we fully support President Zelensky's peace plan as well as the outcomes of the Summit on Peace held in Switzerland. [...] However, for Ukraine to be able to negotiate fairly, we must ensure it does so from the position of strength, not necessity. Today Ukraine must receive support in order to establish a new balance of power, which will force Russia into negotiations and bring an end to its aggression," Plenkovic said.

He added that this is why this summit matters and continued assistance from Southeast Europe to Ukraine matters.

"Supporting Ukraine is not just about helping in the current crisis, but it is an investment in a safer world and more stable future for Europe and our children," Plenkovic said.

He stressed that with the heroism of the Ukrainian people and its leadership and with partners' determined resolve to help them in this light, he had no doubt that Ukraine would prevail.